Hey Beehaw, whatcha reading right now?
Currently reading Hitch hikers guide to the galaxy really fun reads though it got weird in some places
The eyes of the dragon by Stephen King
I read this so many times that my hardback copy started breaking. You know how the edges of the outer cover about 2/3 of the way down start getting fuzzy from being held when you’ve taken off the dust jacket? Almost fuzzy enough to make into a rope for escaping from a tower.
Just started Howl’s Moving Castle. Liking it so far!
Not exactly like the movie, but it’s pretty close.
I legitimately did not know there is a book. It’s my favorite movie so I might pick this up.
A lot of Miyazaki’s films are based on books! Kiki’s Delivery Services is a book as well, and Secret Life of Arietty is based on The Borrowers.
Pattern Recognition, William Gibson.
Gibson is tough to get into, personally, but his stories are very cool!
Finally finished with Pattern Recognition, William Gibson. It was… nice, it definitely felt like Gibson was uncomfortable writing in the present tense.
Next up is a Brazillian book, As águas-vivas não sabem de si by Aline Valek
I finally managed to read through Gardens of the Moon recently which I really liked, so now I’m on to Deadhouse Gates.
I usually have a print/ebook and an audio book (for the car) going at the same time.
For print book, currently reading Crooked Kingdom, one of the books in the Grishaverse series/world. I, uh, got a little obsessed after watching the first season of Shadow and Bone a year or two ago.
For audiobook, currently listening to Children of Ruin. Not too far into it yet, but I loved loved loved Children of Time (also listened to the audiobook version), so I’m excited to see where this one goes.
I really want to read Children of Time. I actually did start it and got half way through, but I have such an intense arachnophobia that I had to give up because I kept dreaming of spiders and waking up terrified. I enjoyed his writing style, though, and am curious about his new trilogy coming out.
Aah that’s so rough, I’m sorry to hear that! I’m terrified of spiders IRL but fortunately it doesn’t extend much to other media 😅
Is it the Final Architecture trilogy that’s his new one? I’ve got the first book on my to-read list, but haven’t gotten to it yet. It doesn’t look like the audiobook has the same narrator as the Children of Time books, though, which is a bummer!
Yeah! The first one is Shards of Earth. I have it sitting on my nightstand to read next since the final book of the trilogy just came out.
Thinking about it, I wonder if listening to an audiobook would help me with the phobia since I’m not usually bothered by people talking about spiders and, for whatever reason, I don’t create as much visualization in my head when I am listening to something as opposed to reading it. Especially since the narrator seems so good!
That’s an interesting observation! If you do end up giving it a shot and it doesn’t bother you as much via audio, you definitely won’t be disappointed in the narrator (IMO). 🙂 (Then again, I feel like I’m really picky about audiobook narrators for some reason, haha).
I feel you. I’m also picky about narrators. I’ve stopped listening to a lot of books because the narrator threw me off. It’s harder to enjoy the plot/characters if the storyteller has the wrong vibes.
You should try getting through it. Arachnophobia is a big part of resolving the plot A beautiful end.
I figured. I got to the part where they captured a woman and she sort of starved to death. They weren’t doing anything evil intentionally; she was completely foreign to their way of life. I assumed the ending would revolve around learning from each other or cohabitation - some type of mutual respect. Maybe not. I’ll get back into it. I have the audiobook on my waitlist for the library.
Currently reading “Brave New World”, Aldous Huxley. Next up Isaac Asimov’s Foundation.
Foundation books are great! Go for it!
My current read is Abarat by Clive Barker.
I’d not heard of it until last week, when folks on r/books were singing its praises in a thread, so figured I’d give it a shot. Yeah, it’s enjoyable. Definitely aimed squarely at the middle of the YA crowd, but it’s an easy read at a time when my brain isn’t letting me really get into any books.
Barker has a fascinating imagination. I finished Coldheart canyon recently. I almost walked away repulsed many times but there was good story under all his signature flair. After Imajica I will try to read anything he writes.
The Murderbot Diaries.
I’ve been enjoying it, it has a surprising amount of heart for a series about an emotionally damaged not-robot.
I was put off by the pricing on these. Full price for novella length. I really enjoyed the first one, I’ll grab the rest if they go on sale
do comic books count? i just started reading DCeased. otherwise i’ve finally cracked open Lolita, it’s an interesting but disgusting read.
I’m halfway into “Guards! Guards!” by Pratchett. My first story of his, and I’m having so much fun!
Once you’ve read that, get a copy of Nightwatch. Much the same cast of characters, but it’s widely considered to be Terry’s magnum opus. That book is a damn work of art.
#GNUTerryPratchett
Yeah, I already have planned to read the whole night watch saga. Then I’ll see what other side of the Discworld to move on to
ahhhh welcome to the discworld!!
You’ll love these books!
Jealous you get to read them all for the first time.
My ‘big read’ this year is Finnegans Wake - which I am (or have been) reading week by week along with the TrueLit sub on reddit. It would be a profoundly different experience to read it without the analysis and discussion going on there, so that is something…
Otherwise, I am reading The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher, which is engaging and entertaining, as was her The Hollow Places which I read immediately before. I am also dipping into a collection of the Para Handy tales by Neil Munro, which are a cosy - if stereotypical and patronising - glimpse into another time and pace of life.
I have just returned from a couple of weeks away during which I finished an anthology of Clarke Ashton Smith short fantasy tales (all about the atmosphere: story and worldbuilding are very much secondary and character scarcely features); Haldor Laxness’s The Atom Station (a sparse look at the clash of modern - written in 1948 - and traditional Icelandic values); and Blackwood’s The Willows (an extrapolation of the original idea of “panic” - as several of this other tales are).
I’m reading The Stranger, by Albert Camus. It’s a short read and I’m already focusing on some of The Atlantic’s recommendations in the Summer Reading Guide.